You Must Be Born-Again

I encourage anyone reading this to get a much better sermon (with a lot better context) on this text from Pastor Kevin here: http://www.ebcrochester.org/misc/resources/sermons/2006-09-17%20-%20Kevin%20Binkley%20-%20The%20Wallop.mp3

John 3:1-21 Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews; this man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, "Rabbi, we know that You have come from God {as} a teacher; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him." Jesus answered and said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." Nicodemus said to Him, "How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born, can he?" Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. "Do not be amazed that I said to you, 'You must be born again.' "The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit." Nicodemus said to Him, "How can these things be?" Jesus answered and said to him, "Are you the teacher of Israel and do not understand these things? "Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know and testify of what we have seen, and you do not accept our testimony. "If I told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? "No one has ascended into heaven, but He who descended from heaven: the Son of Man. "As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life. "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. "For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. "He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. "This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. "For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. "But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God."

• Being “born-again” is not a separate category of Christianity. It isn’t an add-on to the Christian life. It is the beginning of the Christian life and is absolutely essential to your eternity.
• Being “born-again” is just as radical as being born the first time. At one point you didn’t exist, then you were physically born. Similarly, at one point you were spiritually dead, then you were born spiritually into God’s kingdom. You may not remember the exact time, but you should be able to look back and see a time when you weren’t living for God, then by a miracle of the Holy Spirit, you began to love everything about Him and His family (reading the Bible, more heartfelt, consistent prayer, enjoying church, singing praises and listening to sermons, and you began to grow immensely in the fruits of the Spirit).

Have you ever heard a testimony like this:

I gave my heart to Jesus as a child. Then I became involved in drugs, robbery, muggings, rape, murder, pornography, torture, gambling, money laundering, adultery, perjury, treason, extortion, and other things I’d rather not mention. I was filled with anger, hatred, and greed, but all the time I knew the Lord and gave my heart back to him when I was an adult.

Or a story like this:

There was a pastor of a large church who had a real heart for shepherding his people. One night there was a knock on the door from a guy who wanted council at 3:00 in the morning. But because of his heart, the pastor agreed to meet with him in the middle of the night. The pastor ran to his room to put some clothes on while the man waited in the living room. As the pastor entered the living room, the man attacked him with a machete so viciously that the pastor was barely recognizable, with blood everywhere. Later that week, when the neighborhood was discussing the event, it was discovered that the man went to another church nearby and the people were trying to figure out how a Christian could do such a thing to another Christian.

Points to ponder/discuss:

• What does someone who is born-again look like (how do they act)?
• Has this experience been evident in your life?

1. Nicodemus grew up in the Jewish culture. He knew the Scriptures inside and out. He was a very well respected teacher of the Law.
2. Jesus told Nicodemus that mere knowledge or lineage was not enough to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. You must be born-again.
3. Nicodemus knew it was impossible to be physically reborn, so he asked Jesus for clarification.
4. Jesus explains that you are born once of the flesh, but that you must also be born of the Spirit and it is a supernatural work of God. Imagine if someone showed up to Bible study an hour late and said, “Sorry I’m late everyone. I was in a bit of an accident. I was hit head on by an 18-wheeler.” You would say, “That’s impossible. There is no way someone can have an encounter like that with something that big and walk away unaffected.” More so, how can we walk away from an encounter with God and not be radically transformed?
5. Jesus explains to Nicodemus that God sent His Son to die for the sin of the world. Those who believe in Him will be saved. Those who don’t believe are condemned already. Believe is kind of a silly word these days. When people say they believe in God, they simply mean He exists. When people say they believe in another person, they mean they trust that person can accomplish something in their lives. Our belief in God should be that trust that He can accomplish the washing of our sinful hearts, and save us on the Day of Judgment. Imagine a parachute: it doesn’t do any good to believe the parachute exists, but you must trust in it by putting it on and staking your life on it.
6. There will be evidence of the transformation in love for the things of God (holiness, thirst for knowledge, compassion for the lost, intimate prayer).

What are the implications of this teaching from Christ? Is it possible for someone to go to heaven without this transformation of the heart? Does someone need to understand fully the concept of being “born-again” to actually be saved (i.e. Is it possible for a person to be “born-again” without knowing what happened?)? What should we see in a new convert, and what should we expect from them? How should we encourage them to grow in their profession of faith?

Is this what your Christian life has looked like? Are you growing in holiness and a love for Christ and His body? Do you welcome teaching and correction or do you justify your sin and get defensive at a rebuke?